CSotD: The Perils of Paying Attention

Ian Boothby is right: Paying attention to what’s going on is not good for you. Unfortunately, failure to pay attention to what’s going on is even worse for everybody in the long run.

And while there may be some dark satisfaction in schadenfreude, hoping for people to realize what they’ve wrought won’t stop what they’ve wrought from happening to all of us.

RJ Matson notes the utterly bizarre collection of mokes nominated for Trump’s cabinet, and it’s certainly not the brain trust hoped for in each new administration. Here the dark satisfaction is remembering that JFK and LBJ did, indeed, assemble a brain trust and it proceeded to lead us into Vietnam, all the time assuring us that it wouldn’t.

Those who refused to vote for Harris because of Democratic policy towards Gaza are like those who voted for LBJ because Goldwater threatened expansion in Vietnam, except that Trump has been quite open about his willingness to let Netanyahu “finish the job.”

Still, given the way Anne Derenne (Cartoon Movement) sums up the outcome, you have to either be a dedicated hawk or have a truly twisted sense of things to find satisfaction in it. At least the new administration won’t waste a lot of crocodile tears over it.

The whole world really is watching. Harry Burton notes the outrage over the International Criminal Court leveling war crime charges against Benjamin Netanyahu and the lack of outrage over the wreckage that once was Gaza.

But stay tuned, because Trump’s chosen ambassador, Mike Huckabee, is a Christian Zionist who doesn’t think there are such things as Palestinians, and loves Israel because he believes it will be the site of Armageddon, when good Christians like him are swept into heaven and Jews and Muslims are not.

Though while we wait for that, Jared Kushner — who would not be among the enraptured — would like to develop some seaside properties.

“It’s a little bit of an unfortunate situation there, but from Israel’s perspective I would do my best to move the people out and then clean it up,” he explained.

Meanwhile, Peter Brookes finds a bit of dark humor in Trump’s gathering cabinet, bringing up a quote of dubious authenticity but delightful applicability, even with Gaetz no longer in the picture.

And if Wellington didn’t really say that, he did call British soldiers “the scum of the earth,” adding “it really is wonderful that we should have made them the fine fellows they are.”

Well, we’ll see about that, but the question at the moment is whether the GOP will stand solidly behind Trump’s remaining nominees, some of whom are dedicated rightwingers, which isn’t all that shocking, and some of whom are astonishingly incompetent and unfit, which may not matter.

With Gaetz gone, Nick Anderson (Tribune) says, attention is turning to another person with a history of sexual hijinx, including a forcible rape which his supporters say didn’t happen because she didn’t press charges.

Which may have been because she received a substantial payment or because she is like a very large number of women who decide against going through the agonizing process of prosecuting rape.

But Pete Hegsith has a marital history that mirrors Trump’s, with plenty of adultery and divorce. This seems stunning to those who remember Gary Hart having to drop out of the presidential race over a fling and even moreso for those old enough to remember when we thought Nelson Rockefeller’s divorce was the end of his political career.

However, times change, and it’s not that nobody cares anymore. It’s that not enough people care to make a difference.

John Deering (Creators) notes the potential for Brainworm Bobby’s bizarre notions to do actual damage to people, though he employs an historical myth to make his point.

But, certainly, if Kennedy is able to end mandatory vaccinations in schools, there will be more cases of now-preventable childhood diseases, some of which can cause permanent damage and even death.

His spreading of distrust has already had a reported impact in Samoa and there won’t be much satisfaction in “I told you so” if his foolishness harms more children.

Better to anticipate the damage Michael de Adder predicts, should Trump be able to impose the tariffs he thinks will take us back to the Gilded Age of robber barons we experienced in the late 19th century. And it seems likely that his appointees and his congressional supporters will make this possible.

The trade war with China that he touched off with tariffs in his first administration had serious impact on American farmers’ soybean trade, and a more widespread financial conflict would both raise prices for American consumers and heavily damage overseas markets for American companies.

Again, it is perverse to take satisfaction in misery, but there could be some strategic value in this if it hits before the 2026 midterm elections.

Economists are predicting that Trump’s proposals would greatly increase the deficit, but that’s a more gradual process and it’s somewhat distant from the kitchen table issues that swing elections.

However, if the price of eggs made a difference in 2024, the price of everything would likely make one in 2026.

There are other immediate issues bursting upon the scene, including, as Pat Bagley notes, the ridiculous uproar over bathrooms.

On the left, Nancy Mace’s absurd fears are being answered by people pointing out how often the sexes mingle in restrooms with no bad results.

But the real question is not about bathrooms but about bigotry, ignorance and hate, which persists despite there being no record of anyone ever undergoing major surgery and lengthy hormone treatments in order to sneak into the ladies’ room.

Meanwhile, as seen in this Gary Varvel (Creators) cartoon, the same mob that shouted “Lock her up!” at Hilary Clinton over dubious charges of receiving email in her residence instead of in her office is throwing media-driven conniption fits over “Lawfare” when an actual felon is convicted of actual felonies.

It’s not surprising, of course, but it’s not helpful, either, and repeatedly asking, “What if a Democrat had done this?” doesn’t provide a scintilla of change.

But take heart, Kal Kallaugher suggests. We really can’t expect our nation’s main bromance to last forever.

A blow-up in time for the midterms might just be the tonic we need.